Mobile Content Soars Thanks to Device and Network Advances

A third screen that publishers and marketers cannot ignore

Mobile phones have become a staple of daily life, so much so that most consumers can hardly imagine going through the day without one by their side. The reliance on mobile devices for just about everything makes mobile a platform that content publishers and marketers cannot afford to ignore.

eMarketer predicts mobile content revenues will rise from less than $1.15 billion in 2009 to more than $3.53 billion in 2014, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 20% over the period.

“The continuing advance of smart devices—including tablet-style computers, led by Apple’s iPad—and the growing ubiquity of mobile broadband networks mean that consumers have to make fewer compromises when it comes to the consumption of games, music and video,” said Noah Elkin, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report, “Mobile Content: Games, Music and Video Take to the Cloud.” “An improved user experience, and the ability to access an ever-expanding variety of content from the cloud, will attract many new mobile content consumers in the next five years.”

The fastest growth will come from mobile music, which starts from the smallest base and will move from a market focused on ringtones to one where mobile-broadband-enabled users pay to access full-length songs from the cloud.

The mobile video audience will increase threefold between 2009 and 2014, with the steady improvement of devices, the increase in mobile broadband availability and the emergence of viewing options outside the carrier networks. These factors will help boost revenue growth to a CAGR of more than 25% from 2009 to 2014.

“Platform integration is vital for the growth of mobile content,” said Elkin. “The decade ahead heralds a wholesale shift in the content consumption experience. Consumers will expect games, music and video to be available on demand or via subscription on TVs, mobile and PC. The content owners that will thrive in this digital ecosystem are the ones that understand the need to deliver seamlessly across every possible platform.”